Diamond in the Rough
by ParchmentandQuill8
Summary: In this modern retelling of the Disney classic Aladdin, Sara is faced with the decision to either get married or lose her high up position at her father's company. Before she can make up her mind, she runs into someone who has her feeling more confused than she already was.


**This is very loosely based off of Aladdin and I honestly had so much fun writing it. It's just a oneshot for now, but if you guys like it I can see it potentially turning into a multi-chapter story, so let me know! I hope you enjoy!**

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Sara Lance is one of the few people who love their jobs. She works at Lance Industries, one of the biggest multi-function companies in Star City. It had been in her family for generations. Her father is the CEO and has been since before Sara was born. Sara herself had started as an intern in high school and in the years since, she'd worked her way up to become the executive vice president of the entire company.

She knew some people around the office claimed it was only because her father was the CEO, and while that was probably somewhat true, she knew she'd earned her job. She worked hard and deserved everything she'd achieved.

Now, Sara was sitting in her office, ignoring the buzzing of her phone and pouring over an email she was about to send. Today, she'd already ran two meetings, yelled at three business men who had no idea how to do their jobs, and completed her bimonthly review of the financial sector of the company and it wasn't even noon yet.

"Miss Lance," Sara's assistant poked her head into her office, "Don't forget your father requested a meeting with you. You're expected there in ten minutes."

"Thanks." Sara nodded absentmindedly, glancing up momentarily but not even meeting her assistant's eyes before looking back to her computer screen. She gave the email one last read-through before hitting the send button.

Closing down her computer, she stood and made her way out of her office and down the hallway towards her father's.

"Sara!" Quentin Lance exclaimed, standing up as Sara entered his office, "Just the person I wanted to see."

"And why might that be?" Sara asked, crossing the room until she was standing just in front of her father's desk.

"There's something I've been needing to talk to you about. I've been putting it off for a while, but I guess I just gotta do it."

"Okay," Sara replied, sitting in a chair across from Quentin. She'd noticed that her father'd been a bit off over the past couple weeks, but that wasn't particularly unusual. He'd often have little phases of not acting like himself and it was usually work related, but once it had been sorted out, he'd go back to normal. Sara had just figured that this was one of those times.

"So," Quentin said, taking a deep breath as he sat back down, "You know this company's been in our family for generations. It was my father's before it was mine, and my grandfather's before him, and I'll bet you know where this is headed."

"I know all this, dad," Sara said with raised eyebrows, "Where is this going?"

"Be patient, Sara, I'm getting there," Quentin replied, "Anyway, you know I'm getting older, and soon it'll be time for me to hand over the company to my own son."

"You don't have a son," Sara replied, "Unless you actually do. Do you have a son that you haven't told me about?"

"No, nothing like that," Quentin chuckled before his face straightened, "but the company does have to go to a son."

"And if you don't have a son?" Sara asked. After a moment, it dawned on her what Quentin was saying. "Wait, are you saying that I'm not going to inherit the company just because I'm not a man?"

"Honey-"

"Don't you hear how sexist that is?"

"Yes, but-"

"Daddy, I'm practically running the entire company already-" Quentin opened his mouth to protest but Sara beat him to it "- and don't even bother saying that isn't true. You've been playing an awful lot of golf lately. Why can't I inherit the company?"

"It's a tradition, honey. I don't like it any more than you do-"

"Then change it!"

"-but it's a tradition and it's my job as a Lance to keep that tradition alive," Quentin talked over her, "and if there's no son, then it goes to the daughter's husband."

"I thought it went to the _oldest_ daughter's husband. Why isn't the company going to Tommy?" Sara asked, referring to her older sister Laurel's husband Tommy Merlyn.

"Sara," Quentin groaned, leaning back in his chair, "you know full well that Tommy is inheriting Malcolm's company."

"What about Oliver then?" Sara protested. Oliver Queen was married to Felicity Smoak, the daughter of Sara's stepmother, Donna.

"First of all, Oliver wouldn't fit the qualification. He's not my son-in-law, he's my step-son-in-law, and that doesn't count," Quentin corrected, "and even if he was qualified, he's already running Queen Consolidated."

"But I'm not married," Sara complained, "What am I supposed to do, get married right now?"

"Well," he said slowly, "that's what I wanted to talk to you about."

"No," Sara replied instantly.

"C'mon Sara, don't be like that. I know a few of my business partners have sons your own age. Maybe you should meet some of 'em."

Sara looked at her father with an expression of absolute astonishment.

Finally, her face stony, she replied, "Are you honestly gonna try to set me up with some trust fund kids who've never had to work a day in their lives?"

"Sara, they're not all like that! Some of them are doing what you are. Just look at Tommy and Oliver," Quentin countered. Sara rolled her eyes, "Think of it this way: they'll know their way around a company; they'll know how to do the job."

" _I_ know how to do the job!" Sara exclaimed. Her voice was steadily getting louder, loud enough for Quentin's assistant to hurriedly get up and close the heavy glass office door. "It's completely ridiculous that this bullshit tradition is still a thing. Maybe I don't even want to work at a company that thinks that way!"

"Sara!" Quentin protested as his daughter stood and crossed the room. She angrily yanked open the door. Her blonde ponytail swinging behind her, she strode out of the office.

Breathing heavily, Sara went back down the hallway. She paused for a moment in front of her office door, but, shaking her head, she exhaled and continued moving past it, ignoring her assistant's protests as she went.

She took the stairs down to the lobby. She hated standing still when she was angry. She'd been like that since she was little; she'd even taken various martial arts classes as a kid. Now, she couldn't imagine standing in a space as confined as an elevator and not wanting to punch whoever was in there with her.

Once in the lobby, she left the LI building, not paying attention to where she was going. She vaguely waved off her driver and started down the street, walking in whatever direction her feet took her. She could have been walking for hours or mere minutes. She didn't know.

Sara was so lost in her thoughts that she didn't notice any of her surroundings at all until she heard the sounds of tires screeching and horns honking and felt someone grab her arm and yank her back onto the sidewalk.

"Are you okay?" a man asked. Sara blinked a few times and shook her head, pulling herself out of her thoughts and back into reality. She briefly looked over towards the road and saw a taxi driver gesturing obscenely in her direction, "Is that a no?"

Sara focused her attention back on the source of the words. The man's voice was low and lilting, creating an unconcerned air about him.

"No, I'm fine," Sara replied slowly, feeling the man take his hand away from her arms. "I guess I was just kinda zoned out."

"No kidding. I've been watching you for a while, it's no wonder you didn't almost die sooner."

"You've been watching me?" Sara instinctively took a step backwards, warning bells beginning to go off in her mind.

"Is that a thanks for saving you from getting hit by a car?"

Sara raised her eyes skeptically, looking the man up and down. He was very tall and wearing black jeans and a blue parka, even though it was unseasonably warm that November. He had close cropped hair and icy blue eyes. His lips were upturned in a smirk.

She narrowed her eyes. "Why do I feel like I've seen you somewhere."

"Just one of those faces I guess."

"You gotta name, then?"

"Leonard," he replied.

"What, no last name?"

"Not for you." Leonard ignored Sara's scoff. "What about you? Do you have a name or is talking to strangers just a regular for you?"

"Sara _Lance._ " Sara put extra emphasis on her last name, matching Leonard's smirk with her own, "See, normal people give last names."

"Lance like Lance Industries?" Leonard ignored her, nodding in the direction of something behind Sara. She turned and followed his gaze to the LI headquarters. The black and white logo was emblazoned against the tinted glass windows.

Sara nodded, unable to contain the eye roll that followed.

"What?" Leonard noticed the gesture, "Not happy to be on the receiving end of dear old dad's company?"

"I doubt you'd be the person to understand," Sara replied. She began to walk back towards her office. Leonard fell in step beside her. "Are you actually still following me?"

"Well I made it this far," he said, "And anyway, if you're not going to thank me for saving your life, I might as well make sure you get back safely."

"You didn't save my life," Sara argued.

"Tell that to the cab that would have run you over."

"I wouldn't have died," she rolled her eyes again.

"Either way, I would have had it on my conscience and we can't have that, now can we?"

"Typical," Sara scoffed, "Always making it about you."

"I don't think you've known me long enough to make that type of assumption."

"Not just you, all men are like that."

"Oh really?" Leonard said, shortening his stride to match Sara's, "And what makes you think that?"

"Take my father. He won't let me inherit Lance Industries. He claims it can only go to a son."

Leonard's smirk turned into a frown as he furrowed his eyebrows. "I'm not sure that's legal."

"Apparently it is, even though I've worked at LI since I was sixteen, and I know the company better than anyone, except maybe my dad."

"So, what, you got a brother or something taking the company from you?"

"No, I wish. The rule is that if there isn't a son, it goes to the daughter's husband, so now my father expects that I'll just up and get married because now it's convenient to him."

"And you're not the marriage type?"

"No, I am," Sara replied, not noticing that as they walked along the sidewalk, her pace was slowing slightly. What had been a brisk walk, fast enough that they kept having to brush past other people on the street, had slowed to something resembling a casual stroll, "I always thought I'd marry for love, not as a business transaction."

"That's understandable," Leonard replied, "Well, do you love your job?"

"Yeah."

"Then if getting married is your ticket to keeping it, then it should be worth it."

By now they'd reached the shiny marble steps leading up to the LI building.

"You think I should do it, then?" Sara tipped her head to the side, squinting slightly in the afternoon light.

"Yeah, I do."

"Well, thanks Leonard," Sara smirked after a moment or two of silence.

"It took you long enough to get that out."

"Just to be clear, I'm thanking you for the advice, not for saving my life, which, for the record, you didn't do."

"I'll take what I can get."

"Maybe I'll see you around some time," Sara smirked.

"Maybe." Leonard nodded before he turned and walked back down the sidewalk in the direction they'd come. Sara watched his retreating form for a few seconds before she started up the stairs.

After Leonard had walked a couple dozen paces, he glanced back to see Sara Lance entering the office building. Continuing down the street, he pulled his phone out of his pocket and dialed.

"Mick, get ready. We've got a heist to pull."

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 **I hope you liked this! Again, this was just a oneshot for now, but let me know if you'd like to see me continue.**


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